• Codex Committee on Milk and Milk Products
• Codex Committee on Cocoa Products and Chocolate
• Codex Committee on Sugars
• Codex Committee on Processed Fruits and Vegetables
• Codex Committee on Fats and Oils • Codex Committee on Meat
• Codex Committee on Meat Hygiene • Codex Committee on Processed Meat and
Poultry Products
• Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products
• Codex Committee on Cereals, Pulses and Legumes
9.2
Concentrate your resources
It will be unwise for any consumer group to get involved in all these committees. A well- settled strategy is to try and concentrate your resources for maximum effect. At this point it is pertinent to quote Carl Von Clausewitz (1780-1831), a European military strategist: “The best strategy is always to be very strong, first generally then at the decisive point… There is no more imperative and no simpler law for a strategy than to keep the forces concentrated”. In the context of Codex it means that a consumer group should get involved in the work of one or two committees at a time.
The committees a consumer group might choose chould be based on the products of concern in the domestic context. The group would then end up choosing a particular vertical committee to follow. However, it has been found that the focus on a vertical
committee may become too narrow and is also far too technical. Therefore, unless there is a special reason, it is advisable to choose among the horizontal committees that generally have a wider coverage and cover a range of products. One such committee where consumer groups have found great interest is the Codex
Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU). This committee deals with infant foods and has been the focus of many consumer groups that have been historically involved with the campaign on breast-feeding.
9.3
Make this a long-term arrangement
The choice of committees is a strategic decision as the consumer group will need to be involved with the committee for at least a couple of years. Committees meet once a year or every 2 or 3 years and will take a group some years before it can develop a good understanding of the structure, politics and balance of the work inside a particular Codex committee. Therefore, the decision to follow a committee has to become a long-term arrangement.
9.4
Follow the committees
Once a consumer group has chosen a
committee, it needs to follow all the work that comes under its remit. There is a lot of
paperwork to follow. The consumer group must get hold of the agenda papers. It must look at minutes of previous meetings and index relevant papers and materials. Apart from the agenda document there are several position papers and comments by governments and observers that have a bearing on the situation and discussions at the meeting.
9.5
Be selective
Identify the agenda items where you want to fight. It makes sense to choose items that have also regional or global concern. If a subject is too national or ethnic in character, it is unlikely to have much understanding, appreciation or support in a Codex committee. If the subject is widely known and understood there is a greater chance of its progressing on the long 8-step Codex process. If an agenda item of ethnic nature were being discussed, the consumer group would also have a formidable task to educating consumer groups from other countries. The government would have to engage in special lobbying to educate other governments to move the subject forward. Even an activist has to spend considerable time convincing colleagues in the consumer movement from the developed world on such issues, one such example is the meaning of being a “vegetarian” in the context of South Asian food habits, which is understood differently in different parts of the world.
Chapter 10: Preparing for battle
9.6
Create a library of Codex resources
The consumer group needs to develop the nucleus of a library on Codex related materials. The first book to acquire is the “Khaki Book”. It is the book that contains the rules of
procedure on working of all Codex Committees and is a valuable resource to have. The Codex Secretariat in Rome can supply you with a copy. There are reports, documents and related publications that may be useful. Needless to say such a library will also come in handy on any domestic food safety work being
undertaken.
9.7
Mark your calendar
The schedule of Codex meetings is posted on the Codex website and updated at regular intervals.3It is possible for a consumer group
to mark its calendar for meetings of interest. Advance planning, preparation and
consultation are also possible. The work must begin at least two months prior to the targeted Codex meeting. The intensity of exchange, domestically and internationally, will become heightened in the two to three weeks preceding the date of the meeting.
10.1
Download the agenda
Even though it is necessary for tactical reasons to get a copy of the agenda papers from the government, in some cases one may save time by downloading the documents from the codex Website. A consumer group should try and get the listing of agenda items officially from its own National Codex Contact Point in order to get a foot in the door domestically. Many times some documents arrive late and further time is lost within the government to circulate the documents, and consequently it is useful to get the necessary details from the Codex website.
10.2
What items are of national concern?
Scanning the listing of agenda items provides a good idea of their contents. This will help a consumer movement to choose the items of consumer interest to their country. Issues of concern to a government may not be of concern to consumers. Yet on each issue of concern to a national government there is an angle of consumer concern. This is the angle that is least likely to enter the dialogue that precedes formulation of a national position. It is the job of the consumer group to apply its mind to the agenda item of concern and articulate the consumer concerns on the given subject.
10.3